Sarlat or Elsewhere in the Dordogne?

Driving from Paris to Sarlat will take a long time, we spent a night in Bourges on the way but maybe you could do it in one very long day. Better if the strike doesn't happen and you can train to Souillac or Bergerac or even Bordeaux. But you'll want a car to explore in the Dordogne, rentable in the cities just mentioned or in Sarlat or elsewhere. It's a rural area with limited bus service and no local trains.

Sarlat is a popular base for the Dordogne, with lots of lodging and dining choices and a beautiful medieval center, but with a car you could stay in smaller towns. We stayed five nights in Beynac and explored the area, including Sarlat, from there. Les-Eyzies or Domme also come to mind.

Stay in Sarlat and take daytrips to see some of the prehistoric caves in the Dordogne and rent a canoe in La Roque Gageac that you can use to travel to see the gardens at Château de Marqueyssac, Beynac-et-Cazenac and Castelnaud along the banks of the Dordogne River. It is beautiful around there. You would use 4 days to do that. Actually most will recommend a car to maximize an exploration of the Dordogne, although I managed to do most of what I described by a combination of train public buses (if you can read French it is easier) to reach Montignac (to see Lascaux IV) and a taxi to reach La Roque Gageac from Sarlat where I stayed 3 nights last January. There are also tours of the Dordogne that you can buy at the Tourist Info Center in Sarlat in case you do not have access to a car. I got it all covered,

Sarlat is a large, congested town not particularly suitable for those with a car. Literally any town on the local map will suffice and make a fine stay.

It’s probably less than a 7 hour drive so not impossible.

Reading your whole post, rail to/from the Dordogne en route to Barcelona without renting a car is a fraught way to access the area. Avignon for western Provence/eastern Languedoc would be a more logical stopping place and arguably better attractions for older children as the Dordogne is heavy on the charm and scenery for adults, and canoeing and swimming pools that appeal to younger children.

Sarlat is a large congested town not particularly suitable for those with a car.

While you don't need a car while you're in Sarlat, it's not particularly hard to drive into it or to park there. And it's really the only town of any size in the area, so with 2 teenagers you might want to stay there instead of a small village such as Beynac, which is where we spent a week.

I did the Paris-to-Dordogne trek in 2016 when rail strikes and flooding plagued the whole trip. I planned to take the rails on a Tuesday from Paris to Brive, rent a car, and then drive the remaining 1.5 hours. A strike canceled the Tuesday train but it left as scheduled the next day. The EuropCar rental agency has an office across the street from the train station at Brive.

A car is essential in the Dordogne but the others are correct in that Sarlat has a good deal of traffic congestion. Sarlat is definitely worth a half-day to explore but I would stay elsewhere to avoid the congestion. I stayed about 15 minutes to the south near Domme at La Tour de Cause B&B. It's a converted farmhouse and it's run by two chefs whose breakfast and dinner service are out of this world.

I'd book a place in the countryside or a smaller town rather than Sarlat. Many country inns have very excellent restaurants and of course parking and getting on the road are easier than in a congested small city. We have stayed for a week twice, each time in very small villages and on other occasions stayed in Montignac, a country inn near Le Roque Gageac and in Domme. All of the latter three were better bases for the area IMHO. I would take a train to Bergerac and pick up a car rather than making the drive. It is a long day on the road otherwise. We drove on our last trip but we took two days going south and stopped at a couple of towns on the way. I would not want to do it again without at least one stop. We had really good meals in this area and the cost/fabulousness ratio is much better than Paris. We have eaten several times at Hotel Roseraie in Montignac and stayed there once -- our first great meal in France was there; they have new owners so don't know if they have kept the standard but it was really good. We also stayed in a hotel in Domme with a great restaurant and at a small inn with same.

If the trains are running, I suggest taking one to Arles for a few days before proceeding to Barcelona. Otherwise with car think you'd have a better time in a small town like Beynac versus Sarlat.

Have you looked into flying from Paris?

We have stayed in the country near Sarlat several times and will be back for the month of September, thats how much we like the area. We go to Sarlat frequently but I'd suggest staying in the country side or a small village around Sarlat.

Last time we drove from Sarlat to Omaha Beach, about 8 hours. I didn't consider it a bad drive and Paris is a shorter drive.

You will enjoy the Sarlat area.

Just to add my recent experience in the Dordogne area, let me say that all the towns in the area can be challenging for drivers, particularly on their respective market days. Those are also my favorite days to visit. Sarlat, as the largest of these small towns, has the most to do see and do and offers a larger variety of restaurants and local grocery stores. My solution to do the driving/parking issue was to stay in an apartment on the edge of town. This allowed easy driving access to roads out of town and a short walk into town. La Maison Pierre d'Or has a variety of apartments. We appreciated the comfort, space, kitchen facilities with washing machine.

I love Sarlat. My husband and I were there last September for 5 days. We are going back for a week this September. It is a beautiful medieval town. Easy to walk around with many great restaurants. We rented an apartment right in the town from VRBO. There are many free parking lots just outside the walls of medieval area. We never walked more than 5-7 minuets from door of apartment to car. Many sites a short distance away. We looked at other towns in the area. This seemed the best to us.

Sarlat is wonderful, my wife and I visited for a day and a half on our 2003 whirlwind trip to France. One town to look at, that's on the way, is Collioure. Just north of the Spanish border, a couple of hours from Barcelona via train. I do think the train lines are quicker through Provence, there is a high speed TGV line there.